Daniel Wegner's opponent process theory

Thoughts can have a great influence on how we feel and behave. Sometimes, we can have unpleasant thoughts that we want to disappear from our mind because they generate. However, most likely, the more we try to ignore them, the more force they earn. This phenomenon was described by Daniel Wegner in the opponent process theory.

This theory is important within the field of psychology and mental health because it helps us better understand certain psychopathological processes. In cases such as obsessive disorders and anxiety, unwanted thoughts play a crucial role. Therefore, understanding how they work is useful to address them and improve people's quality of life.

Content

• What is the opponent process theory?
• Wagner's experiment
• The conclusions of the study
• What can we do to avoid the thoughts that we don't want?
  • References

What is the opponent process theory?

León Tolstói was a Russian novelist who is awarded the initial idea of ​​the opponent process. On one occasion, the author reported an anecdote that, once, wanted to join his brother's club. However, his brother told him that, in order to enter, he had to pass a test: not to think of white bears. The test failed at the time and then sat for several hours trying not to think of white bears. But, the more he tried, the more times the white bears appeared in his mind.

Later, Fiódor Dostoevski wrote about this matter in a work entitled Winter notes about summer impressions. In a passage of the writing, Dostoevski invites the reader not to think of white bears to check how they appear again and again in the mind.

It was not until the 80s that Daniel Wegner decided to do an experiment and thus the opposition process theory was born. Wegner's goal was to verify Tolstoy's idea that repressed thoughts return more strongly to our conscience. At the time, Wegner called this phenomenon as an ironic bimodal control mechanism.

Wagner's experiment

The essay was carried out at Harvard University and recruited a group of volunteers who underwent different tests. During the first part, participants were told that they could think about what they wanted, except in a white bear. If they thought about one, they had to touch a bell to let the researchers know. They soon realized that the volunteers touched the bell.

Later, in the second part, participants were asked to write their thoughts before going to sleep. A group of them were told that they could write what they wanted, except things related to someone they liked. On the other hand, the rest of the participants were told that they could write everything they wanted about that person.

After analyzing the data of the second phase, it was found that the people who repressed the thought of the loved person dreamed. And, they did twice as many times as those who had been allowed to write about said person.

The conclusions of the study

The previous essays allowed Wagner to check the opponent process theory. According to the scientist, when we repress a thought, two opposite mechanisms are launched in our brain.

First, a part of this is responsible for suppressing unwanted thought so that it does not appear in consciousness. At the same time, another part of brain activity is invested in ensuring that unwanted thought remains hidden. It is there where the "ironic" of the matter comes because when trying to make sure that thought does not return, we inevitably think about it.

This is a process that we often observed in people living with anxiety disorders or compulsive obsessive disorder. Throughout the day, they have thoughts that generate emotional discomfort and the most common mechanism to combat them is suppression. However, in doing so, these ideas end up returning more strongly and discomfort intensifies even more.

As a result, patients with anxiety can end up falling into rumination or thinking loops. While patients with TOCs turn to certain rituals with calm their anxiety momentarily. But, after a while, the thoughts appear again and with it the discomfort and the need to evade them.

What can we do to avoid the thoughts that we don't want?

The opponent process theory teaches us that trying to repress unwanted thoughts is an inefficient mechanism. If you want to have greater control about what you think, maybe some of the following methods can help you:

• Think of something else. Another of the discoveries that Wegner made is that it is more useful to think about something else than suppressing an idea. Focusing your mind on something else can help thought to appear temporarily.
• Establish a "junk time". Junk time is a technique to handle intrusive thoughts that consists in dedicating a specific period of time. Instead of repressing them, we will select a moment of the day to think about that. For example, we could say "I will think about this today from 3:00 pm to 3:30 pm".
• Explore thought. Many of the thoughts that generate discomfort have a root that is associated with past learning experience. Psychotherapy can help to better understand these learning and replace them with new ways to deal with problems.

In conclusion, the opponent process theory shows us how the repression of thoughts is a double edge weapon. If we have unwanted thoughts, the best thing we can do is face them instead of fleeing them and prolonging suffering.

General characteristics of obsessions

References

• Montañés, m. C. (2005). Emotion Psychology: The emotional process. University of Valencia, 3.
• Vargas Ramos, J. C., & Jiménez Rodríguez, D. (2018). The opponent process theory as a model to explain addictions. Electronic Iztacala Psychology Magazine, twenty-one(1).
• Wegner, d. M., Schneider, d. J., Carter, s. R., & White, T. L. (1987). PARADOXICAL EFFECTS OF THOUCHT SUPPRESSION. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53(fifteen.